Travel Thoughts and Travel Guides

Cebu

Since we have decided not to pursue Bantayan Island and concentrate on South Cebu we got ourselves almost 2 full days of free time in our itinerary.

The night before we met with Travel Bloggers from Cebu City and they highly recommended to try the lechon of Carcar City. We added this on our itinerary and a visit to Moalboal. We decided to do a late start (10AM) from Mandaue City for us to reach Carcar City at around 12 noon.

Carcar City Lechon

November 18, 2015 (Wednesday)

Travel to Carcar City from Mandaue City

10:32 AM From our stay at The Orchard Suites in Mandaue City, where we made the last minute major change in our itinerary, we rode a taxi to the South Bus Terminal of Cebu City. It was a smooth ride and we only experienced minimal traffic since we left after the rush hour.

It was uneventful ride except for the additional 10 Pesos/vehicle entrance fee going inside the South Bus Terminal.

Our Taxi at South Bus Terminal of Cebu City

10:58 AM (26 minutes travel time, 140 Pesos Taxi Ride) We arrived at South Bus Terminal and quickly went to the line of Ceres Bus and looked for either the bus going to Bato via Oslob or Bato via Barili. Both routes have the same travel up to Carcar City, from there they would be splitting directions before heading to Bato.

If you have a lot of questions about the Canyoneering Activity in South Cebu, this post would be helpful as I try to answer all the questions that I had before we did the Canyoneering. In short this is my Cebu Canyoneering Travel Guide.

Do note that there are many service providers for the Canyoneering activity in South Cebu but we availed the services of Kawasan Canyoneering since they are a professional group of guides who are based in Badian, Cebu – where the Canyoneering activity is located. You can check out their contact details at the end of this post.

Anyways, here’s the travel guide.

1. Starts at Badian, Cebu

The start and end of the Canyoneering Activity is at the intersection along the highway to Kawasan Falls in Badian, Cebu. Badian is a municipality of the Province of Cebu which is located 3 hours away via bus from the South Bus Terminal of Cebu City. The fare was 120 Pesos/person (one-way).

It is important that you take the Ceres Bus bound for Bato via Barili. Do not take the bus Bato via Oslob as this will not pass by Badian. The earliest trip is at 4 AM. The last Trip is at 6 PM. Bus departure interval is around 30 minutes.

Tell the conductor to drop you off at Kawasan Falls.

A little note, when you go down the bus locals will swarm you but be calm and just walk towards the church and tell them that you need time to think.

Since we availed our Canyoneering activity with Kawasan Canyoneering, our starting point is at Matutinao Beach Resort, which is actually located across the street from the church. We slept here the night before to be sure that we are well rested for the Canyoneering Activity.

Matutinao Beach Resort

If you are doing a day trip you can leave your belongings with Matutinao Beach Resort when you avail the activity with Kawasan Canyoneering.

It was the last day of our South Cebu Trip and the 5 days continuous fun and adventures really took a toll on my body. I was tired and I wanted a clean, comfortable room to sleep in. I wanted a room that has a fast internet so that I do not have to leave the hotel for me to work. I wanted a hotel that is easily accessible to food establishments and convenience stores. The spirit of backpacking was not in me that time. I was in staycation mode and I was very happy that we stayed at The Maxwell Hotel in the heart of Cebu City.

The Maxwell Hotel Experience

Upon arrival at the South Cebu Terminal of Cebu City, we rode a taxi and told the driver to head to The Maxwell Hotel in N. Escario Street. The driver told us to hop in and after 11 minutes we were at The Maxwell Hotel. (Discounted Rates)

Staff Interaction

Upon arrival of our taxi at The Maxwell Hotel, the staff greeted us with a smile and asked if they could carry my big backpack. We entered and their front desk staff were also hospitable as we told them our names and our reservation. They had a lobby area where we sat while they verify our reservation and checked if our room was ready. Then after about 3 minutes, they told us that the room was ready and gave us their WiFi password.

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Front desk

Hotel Lobby

The Room

The room was clean and spacious. The bed sheets were well arranged. The lighting was not harsh to the eyes. Just the right amount of light and we could still turn on switches to give us more light.

We had an enjoyable stay at The Orchard Cebu Hotel & Suites in Mandaue City when our flight arrived around 10:00 AM (November 17, 2015) at Mactan Airport.

Originally, our plan was to wait for a later flight of my brother to Cebu since he was coming from Manila and head to Bantayan Island via the North Bus Terminal. Unfortunately, due to the APEC his flight got cancelled and was rescheduled to the early morning of November 18, which made us look for a hotel with a good reputation in Mandaue City, thus we found The Orchard Cebu Hotel & Suites.

Why Mandaue City?

We did not want to go through the hassle of passing through the traffic of Cebu City just to get to the North Bus Terminal which was located in Mandaue City. Plus Mandaue City is much closer to Mactan Airport (Cebu) than Cebu City.

The Orchard Hotel & Suites Experience

I could tell you in general that I had an enjoyable and comfortable stay at The Orchard Cebu Hotel but let me tell you some details why I liked my stay there. (Discounted rates)

Hotel Lobby seen from the second floor.

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Staff Interaction

When we entered the building premises the staff were smiling and were eager to receive us. They asked the right questions for them to process our reservation the quickest way possible and I am very happy for it because they did not waste our time. They were even knowledgeable on where to go if we needed to buy something or steps when we needed to go somewhere.

Everytime we passed by their staff along the hallways they would always greet us with a smile.

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